Yemen aid response buckling under funding cuts as needs keep rising

According to the December humanitarian update from aid coordination office, OCHA, Yemen’s 2025 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan is just 25 per cent funded, forcing agencies to scale back life-saving services across all sectors, despite worsening needs. 

Health and protection services have been particularly hard hit, exposing vulnerable communities to growing risks. 

Health services still on the brink 

The health system, already weakened by years of conflict and underinvestment, is “on the brink”, the report said.  

Since January last year, 453 health facilities have faced partial or imminent closure across 22 governorates, including hospitals, primary health centres and mobile clinics. 

These disruptions come amid widespread food insecurity, malnutrition, unsafe water and sanitation, and recurring disease outbreaks. 

Cuts are affecting both areas controlled by the internationally recognised Government and those under the de facto Houthi authorities, underscoring the nationwide impact of the funding crisis.  

Millions of people now face reduced access to basic healthcare, maternal services and emergency treatment. 

Beyond health, food security and nutrition remain major concerns. While partners have continued to deliver assistance where possible, reduced funding has constrained coverage at a time when many families are struggling to afford food or recover from climate shocks, including floods that hit Marib governorate earlier in 2025.  

A coordinated flood response there has shown how shock-responsive cash assistance can help families recover more quickly, but such approaches require sustained resources. 

Despite the bleak outlook, OCHA highlighted the continued importance of the Yemen Humanitarian Fund, which has helped channel limited resources to priority, life-saving interventions, and of community-based projects that aim to restore dignity and resilience for displaced families. 

Conflict backdrop 

Yemen has been devastated by more than a decade of conflict between Houthi movement rebels and the Government of Yemen, following the Houthis’ takeover of the capital, Sanaa, in 2014.  

Although large-scale fighting has eased in recent years, tensions remain high and the risk of renewed hostilities persists, threatening to reverse fragile gains and further deepen humanitarian needs. 

OCHA urged donors to step up support, warning that without urgent funding, further service closures are likely, with devastating consequences for Yemen’s most vulnerable people.